Theory and previous studies have suggested that sexual aggression in juveniles is associated with past sexual victimization, deficits in social competence, and high levels of neurotic symptoms. This study examined these and other variables as potential correlates of sexual aggression in a sample of 210 chronic delinquents that included 24 arrested sex offenders, 26 self-reported sexual offenders, 106 nonsexual violent offenders, and 54 low-violence controls. Arrested and self-reported sex offenders differed only with respect to sexual victimization, with arrested offenders being more likely to report victimization by a male perpetrator. The combined sex offender group differed from the low-violence control group on several variables; the former reported greater exposure to serious physical abuse and to domestic violence involving weapons, attitudes more accepting of sexual and physical aggression, and more use of aggressive control seeking in response to stress. Implications of these findings for rehabilitation and treatment programs are discussed.
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